Quality for Value. Are you getting what you pay for?

Leading up to The Order: 1886, a complete playthrough appeared on YouTube that clocked in at approximately five hours. This relatively short completion time sparked skepticism and outrage among many gamers who insisted that a $60 title needs to be longer. Setting aside the concerns about The Order specifically, the situation highlights the bizarre relationship between quality and value in the world of gaming.

When it comes to buying games, we expect certain things in terms of how much content we get in exchange for our money. However, those base expectations change over time.

These days when a $60 game sits on the shelf beside the likes of Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption, it has a higher bar to clear. Not every game needs to be a sprawling open world or offer endless hours of multiplayer matches, but the general trend has shifted in that direction, which makes it harder to entice gamers to buy a title that offers less content – regardless of how good that more compact experience may be.

Another change over the years is the increasing variety in price points. Platforms like Steam and mobile app stores give gamers more choices at lower costs. Short indie games and breezy endless runners aren’t scrutinized as much by consumers because of the lower cost of entry. This shift in expectations has made consumers today more value-conscious; a game being short wasn’t always a major issue. For instance, Mirror’s Edge (now a cult classic) is about as long as The Order. Though the fact came up at the time, it wasn’t met with the “Seven hours? No sale” indignation that we have seen surrounding The Order.